The PEOPLE demand we pull out...NOT

Those of you who have been following this blog for any length of time know that those of us at Wake Up America are solidly behind our troops, and in regards to winning the war, behind the President. We have scoffed at polls put out by the dinosaur media, we have stated our own views, we have included the opinions of others. Most of the time what I do is strictly opinion based, I don't often cite outside sources for my thoughts, for they are MY thoughts and I own them, and they are based on such a broad spectrum of sources and information it would be very hard to pin down that many places list as references.

That being said.

What follows is the poll the dinosaur media WON'T show you:



This poll and the article which accompanies it can be found at Investor's Business Daily. It falls right in line with what we have been saying HERE since the beginning; by and large the American public realizes that we HAVE to win the war in the Middle East. Failure is not an option. You can also see by the breakdown results in the poll, most of those who are NOT hopeful that we can win are (no surprise here) Democrats.

Nuff said? I think so.

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

NRA update

From the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights,

Amendment II

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

I am the NRA.

That's the slogan of many of us who are members of the National Rifle Association. In my mind, it's a good one. It keeps all of us in mind that the NRA is a member based and minded organization.

That being said.

From time to time, I'll be bringing you updates of things the NRA is involved in. The second ammendment is a very important piece of our legal system, and I cannot imagine a country called the United States without it, or any of the other parts of our Constitution.

City of New Orleans, Mayor Ray Nagin
Once Again Found in Contempt of Court
District Court Judge to City Attorney:
Conduct "wholly unprofessional"
Fairfax, VA-The National Rifle Association (NRA) and law abiding gun owners have won yet another victory this morning against New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and former police chief Warren Riley.

Judge Carl J. Barbier, presiding over the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, granted NRA's motion for contempt against New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and Warren Riley for "failure to provide initial disclosures and to compel answers to discovery" during NRA's injunction against the City for their illegal gun confiscation of law abiding citizens following Hurricane Katrina in 2006.

"Once more, Mayor Ray Nagin and former police chief Warren Riley are held accountable for considering themselves above the law," said Chris W. Cox, NRA's chief lobbyist. "These men have had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, every step of the way in this process to return the lawfully owned firearms to their own citizens, and Judge Barbier rightly found them in contempt of court for their complete lack of respect for the rule of law."

Furthermore, Judge Barbier concluded the delaying tactics by the City's attorney, Joseph Vincent DiRosa, Jr, to be "wholly unprofessional and shall not be condoned". Mr. DiRosa admitted in Court that he had "no good reason" to explain his actions and has been ordered to pay partial legal fees to NRA's attorneys for their wasted time and money.

"Ray Nagin, Warren Riley and their attorney refused to provide vital information to the U.S. District Court for their unconstitutional acts in their city's time of great need," concluded Cox. "On behalf of the lawful gun owners of New Orleans, NRA is pleased with this outcome, we thank Judge Barbier for his swift decision and we will continue to press for the full return of all the city's confiscated firearms."


-NRA-


Established in 1871, the National Rifle Association is America's oldest civil rights and sportsmen's group. Four million members strong, NRA continues its mission to uphold Second Amendment rights and to advocate enforcement of existing laws against violent offenders to reduce crime. The Association remains the nation's leader in firearm education and training for law-abiding gun owners, law enforcement and the military.

Can I GET an AMEN?

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

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Calling all Eagles

[UPDATE on this story found here]

I've said a time or two (or more) in the past that the veterans of our nations armed forces will not sit by silently and let our younger brothers and sisters currently bearing arms be the subject of ridicule and harrassment by a group of people who don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. It seems that my prediction has come to bear:

Leftist activists who march to the Pentagon next month will discover that their path won't be as clear as it has been in the past.

The group, led by Cindy Sheehan, Jane Fonda, Ramsey Clark and their ilk, plan to gather March 17 at the Vietnam Memorial Wall to begin a march to protest America's involvement in the Iraq war. The date marks the fourth anniversary of the war's beginning.

This time, however, protestors will see objectors if they spit on Iraqi veterans again, or throw paint on a war memorial. This time, they will encounter a buzz saw of Vietnam veterans and supporters who will gather to protect the Wall, and show their support for U.S. troops. The counter-protestors are calling themselves the Gathering of Eagles.

I'm telling you what, I couldn't be happier about this unless I was going to be able to BE THERE in body myself.

"The anti-war/anti-America group cannot be allowed to use the Vietnam Memorial Wall as a back-drop to their anti-America venom and stain the hallowed ground that virtually cries out with blood at the thought of this proposed desecration ... it must not happen," said veteran Bud Gross. "… All Americans are invited to support our effort, which is intended as a defender of hallowed ground and intended as a non-violent competition between those that would sell out America and those of us who support freedom and keeping the fight with the enemy on distant shores."

The group defending the Wall will be wearing armbands to identify themselves. Those who are unable to stand with the defenders are being asked to wear armbands with small U.S. flags to show their own communities that they abhor the Fonda-Sheehan tactics.

"We'll be there to act as a countervailing force against the Cindy Sheehan-Jane Fonda march from the Vietnam Memorial to the Pentagon," retired Navy Capt. Larry Bailey said. "We will protect the Vietnam Memorial. If they try to deface it, there will be some violence, I guarantee you."

Bailey and thousands of his fellow Vietnam vets are worried that the anti-war protesters will damage the wall, just as they spray-painted the steps of the Capitol at their last march.

The wall is sacred to the men and women who fought in that war.

"It is our contact with our dead brothers -- those who lost their lives in the cause of their country," Bailey said.

This is my word to those of you out to cause mischief, out to stir up discontent, out to stir up trouble: the veterans of the United States armed forces WILL NOT TOLERATE your bullshit, nor will we let you vilify those of us still wearing our uniforms. We've sat by, watching you on the left, listening to your hateful talk, your lies, your accusations of attrocities, your LIES, long enough.

We are TIRED of foreign influences coercing our citizens into activities that promote disharmony in our nation, and if you will look very, very closely at this article, you will see a list of sponsors of this anti-war march, and see that a great number of them are Islamic organizations. Quite a statement made by actions, in my opinion.

I think I speak for the vast majority of those of us who have PUT ON our uniforms and SERVED in our nations defense when I raise the old battle cry of "I'm mad as HELL, and I'm not going to take it ANY MORE."

To those of you veterans who have fallen to the wayside and been swayed by the lies of the left, my prayers are for you, that you will recall when you spoke your oath and said "I AM an American fighting man..."

To my brother and sister veterans, no matter your branches of service, no matter your time period of service, I salute you for taking up the battle once again for our traditions and our way of life.

WHOOWAH!!

Once and always, an American Fighting Man

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Taking an Unconventional Approach

General David Petraeus has taken command in Iraq and has begun developing his command staff, a group of high level officers with PhD’s in their fields, intellectuals, thinkers, and strategists. So why is WAPO critical of his command staff before they’ve even taken full charge of the situation?

Gen. David H. Petraeus, the new U.S. commander in Iraq, is assembling a small band of warrior-intellectuals -- including a quirky Australian anthropologist, a Princeton economist who is the son of a former U.S. attorney general and a military expert on the Vietnam War sharply critical of its top commanders -- in an eleventh-hour effort to reverse the downward trend in the Iraq war.

Army officers tend to refer to the group as "Petraeus guys." They are smart colonels who have been noticed by Petraeus, and who make up one of the most selective clubs in the world: military officers with doctorates from top-flight universities and combat experience in Iraq.

Essentially, the Army is turning the war over to its dissidents, who have criticized the way the service has operated there the past three years, and is letting them try to wage the war their way.

"Their role is crucial if we are to reverse the effects of four years of conventional mind-set fighting an unconventional war," said a Special Forces colonel who knows some of the officers.

This is something that I’ve been saying for quite some time now. If we’re going to be fighting an unconventional war, then who better to run the operations than those trained in unconventional warfare? But to call this an “eleventh hour effort? I wasn’t aware that WAPO was world renowned for making policy or for their skills in military strategy.

But there is widespread skepticism that even this unusual group, with its specialized knowledge of counterinsurgency methods, will be able to win the battle of Baghdad.
"Petraeus's 'brain trust' is an impressive bunch, but I think it's too late to salvage success in Iraq," said a professor at a military war college, who said he thinks that the general will still not have sufficient troops to implement a genuine counterinsurgency strategy and that the United States really has no solution for the sectarian violence tearing apart Iraq.

"It's too late to make a difference in Iraq," agreed Bruce Hoffman, a Georgetown University expert on terrorism who has advised the U.S. government on the war effort.

Mind you, Hoffman has impressive credentials. By the same token, so does Hillary Clinton. Just a thought. I’m not saying anything about Hoffman’s politics; don’t read that into what I’m saying. What I AM saying is that credentials don’t always make someone right.

That being said…

Haven’t we done enough criticizing of our troops and their leadership, especially in light of the President stating that there have been mistakes made in Iraq and that there will be a redirection of how things will be run? Shouldn’t we be offering General Petraeus and his staff our support and giving them the go-ahead to resolve the situation so that things can begin, maybe, hopefully, to settle down?

I’m so tired of hearing how the American people are “worn out by the war.” Worn out my ass. We’ve not experienced rationing, blackout periods, or curfews, like our grandparents did during the Second World War. We haven’t HAD the hardships of the Great Depression. Our troops haven’t been sent overseas to spend years in combat until the war is finished. They’re rotated in and out of the region. I know some have spent two or three tours of duty in the Middle East, but that’s NOTHING compared to the way we sent troops over to Europe and into the Pacific during WWII. They went with no IDEA when they were coming home.

And since when do our troops need US to protect THEM? As a veteran, I find that insulting. The job of the military IS the defense of our nation, from all threats, foreign and domestic. That’s what they train for. It’s what they sign up for. It’s what they are READY for. The military is in place to defend the civilian populace; the civilian populace DOES NOT NEED TO DEFEND the military from our enemies. What kind of BACKWARD thinking is THIS?

Elitist thinking.

Leftist thinking.

Unreal.

If you people think that radical extremist fascist Islam isn’t a threat, let me refer you back to 11SEP2001.

If that isn’t a full indication of a clear and present danger, what the FUCK is it going to take to wake people up?

General Petraeus, you have my full support, Sir, good luck as you attempt to fight off the political quagmire so that you can do your job.

For the rest of you, I leave this posting with the words of General George Patton: "Lead me, FOLLOW me, or get the HELL out of my way."

'Nuff said.

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

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Crossing the line

There are no words to describe the feelings that I feel right now. No words. Rage is an understatement. Grief is an understatement. Sympathy, empathy, are not enough for how I feel for the family of U.S. Army SSGT Hector Leija, both for their loss and for the blatent lack of disrespect shown to them by the New York Times in their article entitled ‘Man Down’: When One Bullet Alters Everything.

Hat tip to Michelle Malkin and Chuck for this one.

I was absolutely numb after seeing this article and video; numb partly because of reasons that I won’t go into, but mostly because one of our own had fallen, and it was treated as a story. Just part of the reporting. An incident for the news. Just the facts, ma’am. The reporter showed absolutely no emotion whatsoever, other than to make the point that from his point of view, the street and building sweeping operations of the unit he was embedded with were useless.

Let’s go to Webster’s again, shall we?

Embed \Em*bed"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Embedded}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Embedding}.] [Pref. em- + bed. Cf. {Imbed}.]
To lay as in a bed; to lay in surrounding matter; to bed; as,
to embed a thing in clay, mortar, or sand.

Isn’t that how we describe a tick when it attaches? “It’s head is embedded, we need to remove it carefully.” Chiggers embed under one’s skin. Mites embed. Reporters embed…am I seeing a trend here? Ticks, chiggers, mites, aren’t these all parasitical creatures? What does that make an embedded reporter? I think I’m on to something, here.

To be fair, because Lord knows I do try to be fair in my path of following the codes of Chivalry that I hold so dearly, I’m sure that there are reporters out there embedded with our troops who DO hold them in respect and have built relationship of trust and friendship with them. I can’t think of who that might be off the top of my head, other than Michelle Malkin and Bryon Preston, but I’m sure that SOMEWHERE that is the case. But wait, aren’t they, gasp, BLOGGERS? And don’t BLOGGERS try to report things FAIRLY and with some COMMON SENSE? Well, some of us, anyway.

That being said.

(And for those of you who know me, you know that when I say “that being said” that I’m about to go off.)

Where in the HELL does the New York Times get off on using the death of a United States soldier for shock value and reporting? Where is the “moral conscious” of the media in releasing the graphic scenes surrounding the death of one of our warriors BEFORE HIS FAMILY IS NOTIFIED?

“Pardon me, Mrs. Smith, I’m Chaplain Baker and I, um, oh, I see you’re reading the New York Times. Well, all I can say, ma’am, is that we’re sorry that we were unable to inform you through the proper chains established to provide comfort to the families of our boys when they make the ultimate sacrifice for our country and our freedom…”

From the CEO down the reporter writing the story they should every one who came in contact with that be FIRED. Any one who KNEW that that story was being released before the family was notified should be taken out and beaten. Hard.

I’ll be more than HAPPY to help.

But his mother gets to lay the first strike.

During World War II the press corps was told what they could report BY the military.

WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO THAT?

Freedom of information?

Do we REALLY NEED to see the events surrounding the deaths of our soldiers?

BEFORE THE FAMILY KNOWS THEY’RE EVEN DEAD?

Once upon a time there was a thing called journalistic integrity. It’s gone, obviously. This is just the latest in a string of things by the LEFT WING MEDIA that flies in the face of the American people and the American military. There is no longer any honor in being a reporter, evidently. Honor is a word that might as well be Greek to today’s press and media.

I take that back. I do recant that raving moment there. Honor is not dead in the South, and again, this brings back to mind the North versus South mindset, bringing it CLEARLY AND SHARPLY in focus. In my mind, there isn’t much that can show that there is a difference between North and South than this from the Houston Chronicle:

14 rules govern journalists

The media and the Pentagon have sparred about the issue of the portrayal of Americans killed in Iraq — or even caskets containing remains — since the beginning of the war.

Tom Rosenstiel, director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism in Washington, said the incident was typical of the dilemmas that face news organizations in war.

"The fact that a photograph upset people, even family members, is not always sufficient reason not to run it," Rosenstiel said. "Editors may decide that there is a compelling public interest in running a photograph precisely because it does upset an audience."

The agreement that journalists are asked to sign as a condition of embedding has 14 rules. Rule 11 covers military casualties: "Names, video, identifiable written/oral description or identifiable photographs of wounded service members will not be released without service member's prior written consent."

The ground rule goes on to say, "In respect for family members, names or images clearly identifying individuals 'killed in action' will not be released." The rule says names of soldiers killed can be released a day after family notification, but it does not address photographs or video images.

Chira said as far as she knew, the journalists had signed the forms. But she also said: "This issue has never been raised before when the New York Times has shown photographs of wounded soldiers."

The Times said it planned to discuss the issue today with Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, commander of the Multi-National Force Iraq.

Chira also said she had been told by the reporter in Baghdad that he had reached out to two people with Texas connections to act as intermediaries to alert the family that a video was going to be posted. They were Kathy Travis, a press aide to Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, and Principal Gilbert Galvan of Raymondville High School.

Travis had a different account.

"Whoa, that isn't what happened," she said Tuesday night in a telephone interview. "The reporter called me late Monday afternoon and said he understood that the family was upset and that he wanted us to know that he had the utmost respect for the soldier and wanted us to let the family know that."

Galvan said a New York Times reporter called Monday, saying he could not reach Leija's relatives and asking Galvan to notify the family of the story and the impending release of the video.

Galvan said he went to the Leijas' house and relayed the message. "They looked upset," he said.

Leija's death saddened many in the close-knit agricultural community 45 miles north of the Texas-Mexico border, where he was an honor student and a member of the football team.

The flag was at half-staff at City Hall and was also lowered at the American Legion Post.

God bless Texas.

I didn’t create this North and South thing, it’s been there for over two centuries. Kudo’s to the Houston Chronicle for treating the Leija with proper respect and honor.

To the New York Times: TAKE DOWN THAT GOD DAMNED VIDEO. You’ve done enough damage without continuing to insult these fine people, who I’m sure simply wish to mourn their fallen at this point.

I want to join in with Chuck at From My Position…On the Way in asking an attorney somewhere, to take on this case on behalf of the Leija family and sue the New York Times into bankruptcy.

If they’re going to cross the line and be irresponsible, I don’t give a damn HOW long they’ve been publishing, they need to be shut

the fuck

DOWN.

We don’t need this bullshit.

Once and always, an American Fighting Man

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My turn...

It seems that the day has been filled with commentary on William M Arkin’s WAPO article The Troops Also Need to Support the American People. I’m a little bit late in the day on coming on board with the comments and postings, because unlike the ESTEEMED Mr. Arkin I do actually work for a living, but I’m in from work for the day and have read his piece (of shit) and have decided, after reading spree’s posting and those of several others, that enough can’t be said about this self important son of a bitch and his article regarding our troops.

My turn.

The very title of the article smacks of self righteousness. Does this knucklehead not understand the fact that the troops DO support the American people by devoting themselves, a portion of their lives, if not their entire careers, TO the American people?

Obviously not.

So right off the bat, his article is derogatory and hateful. That’s before reading even the first sentence.

I'm all for everyone expressing their opinion, even those who wear the uniform of the United States Army. But I also hope that military commanders took the soldiers aside after the story and explained to them why it wasn't for them to disapprove of the American people.

It’s apparent to me that this knucklehead follows the Orwellian model from Animal Farm; “some are more equal than others.” EVERY citizen of the United States is assured of the right to freedom of speech. Not just asshole Op-Ed writers and journalists for such bird cage liners as WAPO. YES, Comrade Arkin, even those in UNIFORM (hat tip to Uncle Jimbo at BlackFive for the suggestion that Arkin was turned by the Soviets. Well put, Top) have the rights of the Constitution of the United States of America. Deservedly so. They are the defenders of it.

Sure, it is the junior enlisted men who go to jail. But even at anti-war protests, the focus is firmly on the White House and the policy. We don't see very many "baby killer" epithets being thrown around these days, no one in uniform is being spit upon.

Tell that to Joshua Sparling. I’m sure he’d heartily agree that the flying spittle that landed on him was done quite by accident (man I wish there was some way to show a smirk in writing this).

Rose colored fucking glasses, or lying through his teeth one or the other. What a dickhead.

So, we pay the soldiers a decent wage, take care of their families, provide them with housing and medical care and vast social support systems and ship obscene amenities into the war zone for them, we support them in every possible way, and their attitude is that we should in addition roll over and play dead, defer to the military and the generals and let them fight their war, and give up our rights and responsibilities to speak up because they are above society?

The typical enlisted personnel’s wages usually put them well below the norm of the poverty level. Add to that the restructuring of health care benefits some years back where the military is under more of an HMO type program than when I was in.

But it is the United States, and the recent NBC report is just an ugly reminder of the price we pay for a mercenary - oops sorry, volunteer - force that thinks it is doing the dirty work.

Yeah, that’s really indulging our “mercenary” force, all right.

Mercenary \Mer"ce*na*ry\, n.; pl. {Mercenaries}. One who is hired; a hireling; especially, a soldier hired into foreign service. --Milman. [1913 Webster]

Ahem. Don’t you just love Webster’s?

To give the devil his due, Comrade Arkin DID say, “I was wrong in using the word mercenary to describe the American soldier today.” But words mean things, do they not? When WERE American soldiers mercenaries? They must have been at some point in time, according to this lame assed attempt at a non-apology. I’m guessing that my generation of veterans were the mercenaries, those of us who did our time during the 80’s when it was all “me me me.”

Fuck you, Comrade.

I'll accept that the soldiers, in order to soldier on, have to believe that they are manning the parapet, and that's where their frustrations come in. I'll accept as well that they are young and naïve and are frustrated with their own lack of progress and the never changing situation in Iraq. Cut off from society and constantly told that everyone supports them, no wonder the debate back home confuses them.
America needs to ponder what it is we really owe those in uniform. I don't believe America needs a draft though I imagine we'd be having a different discussion if we had one.

We owe them our gratitude for being willing to put themselves in harms way to keep our nation safe. We owe them our thanks for the sacrifices that they make for their love of family and country to leave their homes and go to foreign soil to keep our enemies from coming to our soil. We owe them our RESPECT for the courage it takes to go out into hostile environs and confront people that they don’t know, people that they are unsure of, in order for us to sit here at home and maintain our way of life. YOU, Comrade, owe them a great deal of all of the above for them making it possible for you to sit on your fat leftist ass and deride them.

Fuck you, Comrade.

Personally? I would LOVE to be young enough, and healthy enough (and skinny enough, har har har) to reenlist. But since I can’t, our troops have my full support, my full respect, for what they do. I know, as do so many others of us out here in the unpolled, unresearched, mostly silent majority. It takes a certain kind of insane to be WILLING to go into a combat region, much the same way it takes a certain kind of insane to go up to a burning building while everyone else is running away, armed with nothing more than heavy clothing, a water hose, and an axe.

Or are fire fighters a coddled lot in your mind as well, Comrade Arkin?

Our military today is made up, as has been SO many times, of the best and the brightest of our country. They serve because they choose to do so. As soldiers, as Marines, as sailors, they understand that sometimes they may be in less than desirable conditions. They work hard for what pay that they DO get, and people like you berate them.

You have the freedom TO berate them BECAUSE of them. Ironic, that. Ironic because the very freedom you are exercising is one that has been fought for, has cost lives, and no doubt, will cost more lives.

COMMON FUCKING SENSE says that the 9/11 attacks won’t be the last we see out of these terrorist groups. It certainly wasn’t the first. But it was the most deadly.

You, Comrade Arkin, bring my Cherokee blood to a high boil. I won’t do this, nor am I making a threat to you in any way whatsoever, but the mental image of you being staked out naked under the hot summer sun over an ant hill with just a couple of drops of honey put into your ears certainly does make me smile.

Sadistic, I know, but then again I remain…

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man.


A little post script for Greg Daniels, just to let you know that you haven’t escaped my eyes:

Regarding your comment to one of spree’s posting, The Left Wants our Soldiers to SHUT UP, in which you said, “This is a non-event. Who cares what this guy says?” Let me remind you of some key facts. During the Viet Nam era there wasn’t as much communication between the troops overseas and the home front as there is today. Al Gore hadn’t blessed us with the internet (another smirk for this one), so soldiers on deployment weren’t able to keep up with the news the same way they are today. Censorship was very highly practiced by the Armed Forces Radio Network in country to keep troop morale from being damaged by what the media back home was saying. Somewhere along the way, all that changed with advances in modern technology. Do I think that it’s a bad thing that the troops see what the dinosaur media is saying? Not at all. I think it reminds them on a daily basis how far our country has sunk into a state of moral apathy. My hope is that it gives them an extra reason to hold their heads up proudly and wear the uniform of a nation that was once great, and can be so again. Do we need the left? Absolutely, just as much as we need the right. Two halves to make a whole, with there being some modicum of balance found in between.

However, that being said, someone commented the other day that the left today was not the same left of the FDR era, when the left was as fiercely patriotic as the right, and both sides had the best interests of the American people as a whole in their hearts and minds. There was respect, granted it was often given grudgingly, but they were able to come to a common ground and work together, especially when it came to meeting the threat of a foreign hostile force that threatened our way of life and took the lives of our citizens.

Extremism is never a good thing. It accomplishes nothing; it inspires hatred and distrust. Take a lesson from Comrade Arkin when you start to make your commentaries, Greg. This man has inspired the hatred not only of the American military, but the American veterans and a great number of our civilian population as well.

When one can be so extreme as to inspire that much anger, that much hatred, can we truly say that it is a “non event?”

I think not…

Mike

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